Insanity defense

Often times, I think the insanity defense is used consciously to escape penalties of the law. Or perhaps it can be referred to as the “defense of last resort,” when there is no question that the accused committed the act and the defense can think of nothing else to exonerate his/her client. Consider the case of Andrea Yates. In my opinion, Yates knew the difference between right…

Tests for insanity include M’Naghten Rule and the American Law Institute Model Penal Code. The M’Naghten Rule focuses on whether defendant knew nature of the crime or understood right from wrong at the time the crime was committed. Under the American Law Institute (ALI) a defendant may be found not guilty by reason of insanity if lacking either cognitive or volitional (irresistible impulse) capacity. The ALI test provides…

mind, the insanity defense has often been invoked as opposition to the notion of a criminal’s free will. The insanity defense argues that a criminal is not responsible for their actions if their actions are the result of psychiatric illness. An unusual case surrounding the topic of free will in the justice system was the case of Anders Breivik, a far-right extremist who killed 77 people in the 2011 Norway attacks ("Anders Behring Breivik").…

Why the Insanity Defense should not be Abolished Is it possible to absolutely, without a doubt measure the capacity of insanity? The Insanity defense has been a very controversial topic of conversation for as long as it has been around, although it is the least used criminal defense. There are many reasons why the Insanity defense becomes the topic of conversation is the fact that many people are misinformed about the basis of the insanity defense and what actually happens in these cases. There…

The successful defense of “not guilty by reason of insanity” is rare. However, sometimes the defendant is truly suffering from a severe mental illness, such as schizophrenia, and doesn’t understand that their actions were wrong. When a defendant is found to be insane at the time that the crime occurred, they can’t be unfairly punished for their crimes. Instead, treatment and observational evaluations are necessary. Javier Benitez Jr. was found not guilty by reason of insanity in the 2011 murder…

a legal strategy, recall and relate to facts and events including his motives and actions when the crime was committed. He also has to be able to testify on his behalf. “The insanity defense has nothing to do with a defendants current mental status to be found not guilty by reason of insanity” According to Insanity Defense FAQs in paragraph two. A judge or jury will evaluate the defendant to determine their…

The insanity defense has been around for centuries, dating back to ancient times of the Muslim law and Roman law (Grachek, 2006). It has been modified several times since then, but still gains the public’s attention. One of the main reasons it gains so much attention is due to the myths and inaccuracies. The media focuses on serious cases until the cases are resolved, and then they quit following the defendants. The public does not see what happens to the defendants after their cases are…

The article on A Crime of Insanity (Frontline, 2002), describes the whole process of determining the causes of action for individuals who have a mental illness at the time of committing heinous crimes. This article, in particular, covers the story of Ralph Tortorici, who has a history of mental disorder from as early as his adolescent years. Moreover, Ralph suffers from regular acute paranoid delusions and psychotic behavior, which prompted him to seek help from the University health facility…

In 2003, Andre Thomas viciously attacked and killed his ex-wife and her two children, and was sentenced to death row. His defense argued that he was not eligible for death row because of his mental state. The court ignored the argument and passed it off, saying that they were using his illness as an excuse to “get out of” maximum punishment. As demonstrated in this case, mental illness is not given the attention it deserves when determining a sentence. Cases such as these have aroused concern…

Article Review: The insanity Plea in the Case of a Serial Killer What is this article specifically addressing? This article, “The insanity Plea in the Case of a Serial Killer” By George Palermo and Richard Khnudten explains the case of the infamous serial killer Jeffery Dahmer and his attempt to request the insanity plea to get out of his crimes he committed. Mr. Dahmer killed seventeen men, and when asked about his crimes his responses where clear and coherent. Yet, he pled not guilty by…